Former finance minister P Chidambaram’s counsel on Tuesday sought transcripts of the interrogation conducted by the Enforcement Directorate on three dates in the INX Media money laundering case.
Appearing for Chidambaram, senior advocate Kapil Sibal said the agency cannot place documents in the court randomly and “behind the back” for seeking custody of the accused, agencies reported. The hearing is underway in the apex court before a bench comprising R Banumathi and A S Bopanna.
On Monday, the court extended till Tuesday the protection from arrest given to Chidambaram in the INX Media money laundering case lodged by the ED.
Today, Chidambaram filed fresh application seeking court’s directive to ED to produce transcript of his questioning by the agency to prove that he had been evasive in giving information.
Earlier, countering Solicitor General Tushar Mehta’s claim that Chidambaram’s replies during the interrogation were “evasive”, Abhishek Singhvi , appearing for the senior Congress leader said, “so long as I am available, I can give whatever answer I like and not what ED wants.”
Singhvi argued that the Prevention of Money Laundering Act cannot be applied retrospectively. Singhvi said that the alleged acts took place in 2007-08 before the PMLA Act was amended in 2009.
“We have filed an application that transcripts of all the interrogations should be produced,” Chidambaram’s lawyer Sibal told the Court. Referring to the documents provided by ED in a sealed cover to the Supreme Court, Singhvi said that if ED has in the documents put out certain questions to the Congress leader then it must also be shown what answers he gave.
—India Legal Bureau